Bottle capping machine for flexible caps



Nov. 17, 1931. A. RISSER BOTTLE CAPPING MACHINE FOR FLEXIBLE CAPS 2 sheets-sham 1 Original Filed May 6, 1929 Nov, 17, 1931. A. I. RISSER' BOTTLE CAPPING MACHINE FOR FLEXIBLE CAPS 2 Sheets -Shaet 2 Original Filed May 6. 1929 of putting Patented Nov. 17, 1931 UNITED STATES ,PATENT OFFICE ARTHUR I. RISSEB, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGN'OR TO U. S. BOTTLEBS MACHINERY COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS. A CORPORATION OI ILLINOIS BOTTLE CAIE PIIN'G MACHINE FOB FLEXIBLE CAIS Application-filed May 6, 1929, Serial No. 360,746. Renewed March 30, 1931.

This invention relates to improvements in bottle capping machines, more particularly for placin flexible caps or capsules over the mouth an neck of a bottle, such as the gelatinous caps which are stretched on over the corks of drug bottles to protect the contents of the bottle from deterioration.

Objects of this invention are to provide a simple and effective machine for perform ing such operations in arapid and accurate manner without danger .of" injuring or perforating the capsule; to:pr ovide such a machine which may be operated manually and to provide a machine which. is adapted to handle many different sizes of bottles and caps with very little or noalterati'on or ad justment in the working parts of the machine.

When the gelatinous capsules are placed in position, they are first softened by soaking so that they become soft and pliable. In this condition they can be stretched into anykind of a shape, but the material has only a limited amount of resiliency or tendency to resume its former shape. Therefore they are somewhat flimsy and diificult to handle. After they dry out in tract to fit closely in place and become hard and brittle. Therefore a particular object of this invention is to provide a machine for performing the somewhat delicate operation on the capsules without requiring especial skill or care on the part of the operator.

For the purpose of explaining my invention, I have shown an illustrative embodiment thereof in the accompanying drawings, in which,

Fig. l'is aside elevation of the bottle capping machine.

Fig. 2 is a detail plan section taken on the line 2-2 of Fig.1. Y

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2. Fig 4-is a section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2, showing a changed position of the parts in an intermediate stage of the capping operation. I

Fig. 5 is a view similar to 4, with the parts in a changed position at a later stage in said operation.

The machine has a cast frame consisting of place on the bottle, they conportion of the-standard, and the guide bear-" ing 6 at the top of the standard. The knee is provided with a bearing 7 in alignment with the top bearing 6, and in these hearings .is reciprocably mounted the shaft 8.

\Vithin the bifurcations of the standard are pivotally mounted in substantially parallel relation the foot lever 9 and the lever 10. The rearwardly extending ends of the levers are connected by the pivotal link 11 "the object of this arrangement being to multiply the angular motion of the foot lever. The forwardly extending end of the lever 10 is connected to the lower end of the shaft 8 b the pivotal link 12, and the shaft is normally raised by means of the coiled spring 13 which is compressed between a collar 14, pinned to the shaft 8,.and the upper surface of the knee 4.

In the outer end of the knee 4 is adj ustably mounted the bottle support post 15, the post being held at the desired height on the post by means of the set screw 16,. and on the upper end of the post ,15 is removably mounted the bottle support member 17, which is re spout or projecting mouth 20,'-which has a flange 21 around the end. A cork 22 is inserted in the mouth of the bottle, and the end of the bottle 1s then covered by the cap or capsule 23, by the means which are provided 1n my invention.

On the shaft 8 is mounted the capping head 25, adjustably secured to the shaft by means of the set screw 26. The head comprises a ring 27, in which are mounted the group of angular upstanding arms 28. The arms are pivoted at their lower ends between lugs 29 formed-on the outer peripheryof the ring 27 and are pressed together, so that their upper ends are normally convergent, by the flat springs 30 which are secured to the lower edge of the ring. The inwardly projecting ends of the arms terminate in upwardly projecting arcuate fingers or .prongs 31 which engagethe caps internallfly, and at the bases of the fingers are formed e angular cam surfaces 32. V

In operation the cap 23 is placed over the group or stack of fingers, as indicated in Fig. 1 and Fig. 3, by the operator. The operatorthen depresses .the footlever 9, bringing the capping head down over the bottle, as shown in Fig. 4. The cam surfaces 32 on thearms contact with the flange 21 of the bottle neck, during said downward movement. This spreads the arms and stretches the cap down over the bottle, the upturned ends of the fingers 31 serving to hold the cap 5 out and pull it down ti htly over the flange 21. As the downwar movement is continued, the fingers are pulled out from under the skirt of the cap, leavin the cap in the desired position, as shown inTig. 5. The bottlemay then be pulled out through the arms, or the foot lever may be released, allowing the head to return to normal-position. During such return movement the arcuate inner surfaces of the fingers ride upover the outer surface of the cap so that the cap is .not disturbed or injured in any manner, since the pressure on the fingers is very light.

For regulating the spaced relation of the fingers when the arms are in normal position to receive a. cap, I rovide the set screws 33, which are thread through the arms above the pivotal mounting thereof andstrikeagainst the surface of the ring. By adjusting the set screws 33 the fingers may be spread apart normally for accommodating 1 ner ends of the arms having larger sizes of caps.

Having thus my invention, my,

claims are: 7

1. In a bottle capping machine, a cap ing head comprising a ring, a plurahty 0 upstanding arms pivotedto the ring and converging towards the center of the ring, the arms having upwardly gn ojecting an outwardly turned fin ers ormed on their inner ends, adjustab e means for stopping the inward movement of the arms, resilient means for resisting the outward movement of the arms, and means for moving the head down over a bottle.

2. In a bottle capping machine, a-capping head comprising a ring, a plurali of u standing converging arms pivot to t e .ring, the arms having upwardly projecting cap-engaging fingers, resilient means for pressing the arms together, and means for moving the head down over a bottle,- the inangular surfacw for engaglng the bottle same. I

3. In a bottle capping machine, a bottle support, a movably-mounted annular cappin head, a pluralit of arms pivotally mounte on the head an having hooked portions for engaging the bottle cap internally, the arms having angular surfaces for th r spreading the May, 1929.

ARTHUR I. RISSER. 

